Table of Contents

How to Remove Underlines in Google Sheets: The Definitive Guide

Want to clean up your Google Sheets and get rid of those pesky underlines? You’re in the right place. Removing underlines in Google Sheets is generally straightforward, but the method depends on why the underline is there in the first place. Essentially, the key is understanding why the text is underlined. Is it a hyperlink? Is it a formatting choice? Once you identify the cause, the solution is usually a few clicks away. This article breaks down the various scenarios and provides clear, concise instructions for removing those unwanted lines, alongside a comprehensive FAQ section for all your underlining queries.

Understanding the Culprit: Why is it Underlined?

Before diving into the removal process, let’s diagnose the situation. The most common reasons for underlines in Google Sheets are:

Hyperlinks: Google Sheets automatically underlines text it recognizes as a website address or email.
Formatting: Underlining might be a deliberate formatting choice, applied manually.
Data Import: When importing data from other sources (like CSV files), formatting sometimes tags along, including underlines.
Conditional Formatting: In some advanced cases, conditional formatting rules might be adding underlines based on specific criteria.

Knowing the “why” significantly speeds up the “how.”

Methods for Removing Underlines

Here’s the detailed breakdown of how to remove underlines based on the common causes:

Removing Hyperlink Underlines

This is the most frequent scenario. Google Sheets loves to turn text into clickable links. There are a couple of ways to handle this:

Direct Removal (Removing the Link):
- Select the cell(s) containing the underlined hyperlink.
- Right-click on the selected cell(s).
- Choose “Remove Link.” This eliminates the hyperlink, and therefore the underline. The text remains, but it’s no longer a clickable link.
Removing the Underline but Keeping the Link:
- Select the cell(s) containing the underlined hyperlink.
- Go to the “Format” menu in the toolbar.
- Select “Text” then “Underline” to toggle the underline off. The text will remain a link, but without the visual underline. Alternatively, you can use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+U (or Cmd+U on Mac) to toggle the underline.
Preventing Automatic Hyperlinking (Future-Proofing):
- Go to “Tools” in the menu bar.
- Select “Autocorrect options…”
- In the “Autocorrect” tab, uncheck the box next to “Replace URLs with hyperlinks.”
- Click “OK.” This prevents Google Sheets from automatically creating hyperlinks in the future. However, it won’t retroactively remove existing ones.

Removing Formatting Underlines

If you (or someone else) manually applied underlining, the fix is equally straightforward:

Select the cell(s) containing the underlined text.
Go to the “Format” menu in the toolbar.
Select “Text” then “Underline” to toggle the underline off. Again, Ctrl+U (or Cmd+U on Mac) is your friend here for a quick toggle.
Alternatively, look for the “Underline” icon in the toolbar (usually a “U” with a line underneath). Click it to deselect it, removing the underline.

Addressing Underlines from Data Import

Sometimes, importing data brings along unwanted formatting. Here’s how to deal with it:

Immediate Cleanup:
- Immediately after importing the data, select the affected column(s) or the entire sheet.
- Go to “Format” in the menu bar.
- Select “Clear Formatting.” This removes all formatting, including underlines, but be aware it will also remove other desired formatting.
Targeted Cleanup:
- Select the cell(s) containing the underlined text.
- Use the steps outlined in the “Removing Formatting Underlines” section above to selectively remove only the underlines. This is preferable if you want to preserve other formatting.

Conditional Formatting Underlines

This is the most complex scenario, but still manageable. Conditional formatting applies formatting based on rules. If an underline is applied this way:

Go to “Format” in the menu bar.
Select “Conditional formatting…”
The “Conditional format rules” sidebar will appear.
Review the rules listed. Look for any rules that apply an underline format.
Edit or delete the rule. To edit, click on the rule. In the “Formatting style” section, ensure the underline option is not selected. To delete the rule, click the trash can icon.

Best Practices for Formatting in Google Sheets

Use Styles Consistently: Google Sheets doesn’t have named styles like Word, but you can create your own “style” by consistently applying the same formatting to similar data.
Clear Formatting Regularly: If you’re frequently importing data from different sources, make it a habit to clear formatting after importing to avoid conflicts.
Use the Format Painter: The format painter (the paint roller icon) allows you to copy formatting from one cell or range of cells to another. This can save time and ensure consistency.
Plan Your Formatting: Before you start entering data, think about how you want your sheet to look. This can help you avoid formatting headaches later.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. Why are my email addresses automatically underlined in Google Sheets?

Google Sheets automatically detects email addresses and formats them as hyperlinks, which includes underlining. To remove the underline, follow the “Removing Hyperlink Underlines” instructions above, either by removing the link entirely or just the underline.

2. How do I remove all underlines from an entire Google Sheet at once?

The quickest way to remove all underlines (and all other formatting) is to select the entire sheet (click the square in the top-left corner) and then go to “Format” > “Clear Formatting.” Be mindful, as this removes all formatting. To target only underlines, you’ll need to identify if they’re from hyperlinks or formatting and apply the relevant methods to columns or ranges.

3. Can I remove underlines from multiple sheets in a Google Sheets workbook simultaneously?

Unfortunately, Google Sheets doesn’t offer a direct way to apply formatting changes to multiple sheets at once. You’ll need to repeat the underline removal process for each sheet individually.

4. Is there a script or macro I can use to automate underline removal in Google Sheets?

Yes, Google Apps Script can be used to automate this. Here’s a basic script to remove underlines from all cells in the active sheet:

function removeUnderlines() {   var sheet = SpreadsheetApp.getActiveSheet();   var range = sheet.getDataRange();   var fontStyles = range.getFontLines();    for (var i = 0; i < fontStyles.length; i++) {     for (var j = 0; j < fontStyles[i].length; j++) {       if (fontStyles[i][j] == "underline") {         range.getCell(i + 1, j + 1).setFontLine("none");       }     }   } }

To use this script: Go to “Tools” > “Script editor,” paste the code, save it, and run the removeUnderlines function. You may need to grant permissions for the script to run.

5. How do I change the default hyperlink color in Google Sheets?

You cannot directly change the default hyperlink color in Google Sheets. However, after the hyperlink is created, you can change the text color of the cell using the standard text color formatting options.

6. I removed the link, but the text is still blue. How do I fix that?

Removing the link removes the underline, but it doesn’t automatically revert the text color. Select the cell and change the text color back to black (or your preferred color) using the text color formatting options.

7. Why are my phone numbers underlined in Google Sheets?

While less common, Google Sheets sometimes incorrectly identifies phone numbers as URLs or applies formatting from other sources. Treat these cases similarly to removing hyperlinks.

8. What’s the difference between “Remove Link” and “Clear Formatting”?

“Remove Link” specifically removes the hyperlink from the cell, leaving the text intact (though possibly still blue). “Clear Formatting” removes all formatting from the cell, including underlines, text color, font, number formats, and more.

9. My imported data has underlines that don’t disappear even after clearing formatting. What’s happening?

This can happen if the underline is embedded in the data itself as a character or special code (especially from older file formats). In this case, you might need to use the SUBSTITUTE function to remove the offending characters. For example, if the underline is caused by a character with code 12, use: =SUBSTITUTE(A1,CHAR(12),""). Identify the offending character(s) and adapt the function accordingly.

10. How do I prevent Google Sheets from automatically creating hyperlinks only for specific columns?

You can’t selectively disable automatic hyperlinking for specific columns using the built-in Autocorrect options. The setting is global. However, you could use a script triggered on edit to remove hyperlinks from specific columns as soon as they are created.

11. Can I use Find and Replace to remove underlines?

No, Google Sheets’ Find and Replace function doesn’t support searching for or replacing formatting attributes like underlines.

12. I copied data from a website, and the underlines are persistent. What should I do?

When copying data from a website, the formatting can often be complex and sticky. Try pasting the data into a plain text editor (like Notepad on Windows or TextEdit on Mac in plain text mode – Format > Make Plain Text) first. Then, copy the plain text from the text editor and paste it into Google Sheets. This removes all formatting, allowing you to format it cleanly within Google Sheets.